Milestone Achieved: New Zealand’s Newest Geothermal Power Station TOPP2 Successfully Synchronised to the National Grid By:  Robert Buluma On 3 December 2025, a significant new chapter in Aotearoa New Zealand’s renewable energy story began when the 49 MW Te Onetapu Power Plant 2 (TOPP2) , the country’s newest geothermal station , was successfully synchronised to the national grid for the first time. Located in the Kawerau geothermal field, TOPP2 is the result of a unique and groundbreaking partnership between Eastland Generation (a subsidiary of Eastland Group) and Ngāti Tūwharetoa Geothermal Assets Ltd, the commercial arm of the Ngāti Tūwharetoa Settlement Trust. A True Partnership Success Story This is not just another power station. TOPP2 represents one of the most successful examples of post-Treaty settlement iwi ownership and operation in the energy sector. Ngāti Tūwharetoa Geothermal Assets supplies the geothermal steam and heat under a long-term agreement, while Eastland Gene...